Turkish, Armenian leaders hopeful to solve problems between countries

The Turkish president said Thursday he wanted the positive climate to eliminate the problems between the two countries.

"I am very hopeful about this," he said in a meeting organized by the American-Turkish Society in New York.

He said Turkey and Armenia did not have diplomatic relations, and their borders were closed, although Turkey was one of the first countries recognizing Armenia's independence.

"However, the two countries have had humanitarian activities," Gul said, reminding of Turkey's wheat assistance to Armenia in 1990s.

Gul said thousands of Armenian citizens were working in Turkey due to economic reasons and flights and cultural activities are organized between the two countries.

"My recent visit (to Armenia) was for a soccer game, but I did not only watch the game with Mr. Sargsyan (the Armenian President). We had the opportunity to discuss bilateral relations, the Caucasus and Azerbaijan," he was quoted by Anatolian Agency as saying.

Gul said it is necessary to solve regional problems through dialogue, and added he hoped that everything would normalize in the end.

Gul also said one of indicators that relations would normalize was the trilateral meeting the foreign ministers of Turkey, Azerbaijan and Armenia would hold in New York on Friday.

"What leaders should do is to eliminate the problems, not to feed enmities," Gul also said.

Gul said that many projects could be carried out between Turkey and Armenia, like establishing industrial zones at the border, after the problems were solved.

A warmer period began between Turkey and Armenia, who for more than a decade have not had any diplomatic relations, after Turkish President Abdullah Gul paid a landmark visit to Armenia early September.

Turkey hopes this period would lead to the normalization of the relations. Turkey and Armenia do not have diplomatic relations because of Armenia's aggression against Azerbaijan.

The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia began in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

Since 1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts.

Some 10 percent of the Azeri population was displaced due to a series of bloody clashes both between and within the two neighboring countries.

In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which time the active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group are currently holding peaceful negotiations.

"TIME TO SOLVE PROBLEMS"
"It is high time to solve our problems with Turkey," Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told at the United Nations (U.N.) General Assembly in New York.

"We hold the same views with President Gul on not passing the current problems to future generations," Sargsyan said.

The Armenian president said he would settle the problems with neighboring countries through dialogue.

He also praised the outcome of Gul's visit to Armenia, saying Mr. Gul shares his determination to move quickly and resolutely in that direction.

Sargsyan also criticized what he called Azerbaijan's "belligerent" stance on the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Voice of America reported.

Nevertheless, he vowed to continue negotiations with Azerbaijan to seek recognition of the largely Armenian-inhabited region, which he characterized as effectively independent, the American broadcaster said.

The Armenian president added the recent bloodshed in the South Caucasus threatened the entire region and beyond. He said the General Assembly must work to modernize its institutions and prevent a return to Cold War-era divisions.